The Growth and Development Strategy III (2017-2022) recognizes the value of volunteerism in increasing the productivity of youth and unemployed Malawians. It envisages the establishment of a national volunteer service programme. The Ministries of Labour, Youth, Sports and Manpower Development and Finance, Economic Planning and Development will work closely with the National Youth Council of Malawi to develop a legal and regulatory framework on volunteerism, as well as an effective national coordination and implementation framework.  

As the secretariat for the plan of action to integrate volunteering into sustainable peace and development under the 2030 Agenda, designated by the General Assembly, UNV is strengthening its convening and facilitating role for multi-stakeholder partnerships for volunteerism and the Global Goals. One way to do so is through enhanced partnerships with the UN Regional Commissions to feed into the existing review and monitoring processes for the 2030 Agenda, involving UN Member States, UN entities, civil society, volunteer-involving organizations, academia and the private sector.

Approximately one billion people are engaging in voluntary action globally.  Their activities range from delivering services, preparing and responding to disasters and providing technical assistance such as in mapping and monitoring climate and environmental data. The growing environmental awareness, often enabled by powerful and cheap new mobile and open technologies, is further triggering new data collection and monitoring efforts by volunteers. 

SEE THE UNV HISTORY IN FULLSCREEN

UNV Executive Coordinator Mr. Olivier Adam spoke today at the IVCO Conference in Seoul in a panel discussion on global advocacy to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 17 on revitalizing global partnerships for sustainable development. The need to establish an enabling environment for volunteerism “to fully contribute to the realisation of any future sustainable development agenda” was the overarching theme of this year’s IVCO.

The Voluntary National Reviews facilitate sharing experiences, successes, challenges and lessons learned, with a view to accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the SDGs. They are voluntary, state-led, undertaken by both developed and developing countries, and ideally involve multiple national stakeholders. The Reports are expected to serve as a basis for the annual reviews by the HLPF.

On 6 July 2017, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Serbia jointly with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) hosted in Belgrade a conference entitled Volunteerism for the Sustainable Development Goals. UNV Serbia facilitated the NGO, CSO and VIO joint-meeting to share knowledge, connect networks, and draw on best practices.

The report includes examples of how empowered Cambodian youth make a difference in their communities. It presents volunteering models that helped Cambodia recover from the decades of war and contributed to the country’s development, some of which can be replicated across the world. According to the results presented in the report, volunteer programmes in Cambodia have made a difference in reducing poverty, eradicating illiteracy, improving health, promoting gender equality, and protecting human rights and the environment.

The Prime Minister spoke enthusiastically about his clear commitment to create a spirit of volunteerism for the promotion of development activities in Mali and "to contribute in solving the social, economic, cultural and environmental problems in order to build a more just and prosperous society." In fact, the Malian Prime Minister sees volunteerism as "a strategy for implementing the government's projects and programmes in a spirit of participation based on the need for the socio-economic growth of communities.

Research shows that millions of young people around the world are ready and willing to provide leadership and inspiration in global peace and development, yet they face vulnerabilities and challenges. United Nations Volunteers (UNV), the UN organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide, has established a programme for young volunteers. Through this programme, UNV mobilizes thousands of young volunteers to support the work of the United Nations around the world.